Misunderstandings
by consuelas revenge
Summary: Now both sophomores in high school, best friends Simon Seville and Jeanette Miller have been dancing around a potential romance for ages. When Simon finally decides to make a move, will all go according to plan? cartoonverse.
1. Chapter 1

Well hello there, welcome to my first, and most likely last, chipmunks story. Haha I have no idea how this thing came to fruition… it started with a few lines of dialogue, and then I wrote the ending, and then the ending needed a beginning and uh, yeah.

Recently I rediscovered the wonders of the chipmunks when I accidentally stumbled upon one of the CGI movies, which I always assumed I would hate, but then I kindof loved it, and had to watch the other two and then go back and watch all the 80's chipmunk stuff… aww yea. Chipmunk love. In this story, they shall be their original 80's selves.

Also when I was little and obsessed with this show I wanted to marry Alvin, but now I find myself being more drawn towards Simon- I have no idea how my 5 year old self never noticed how adorable that nerdy know-it-all awkward little bro really was. And Jeanette. She is just perfect. Put her together with Si and you get shy nerd love, which is just the ultimate couple. A thousand times yes to simonette.

So I wrote them their own story. Nothing too long or intense… I'm guessing it'll probably be 3 or 4 chapters total? I've written the beginning and the ending and I know what'll happen in the middle so we'll see.

* * *

Simon Seville was currently in a state of intense concentration. The 15-year-old chipmunk sat at a desk in the room he shared with his two brothers, and was hunched over a thick textbook, his nose buried deep within the pages. His large front teeth were absentmindedly chewing on his bottom lip, his hand occasionally scrawling things into a separate notebook nearby. In short, Simon was in study mode, and oh, how he reveled in getting to be in study mode.

The room was quiet, just how the boy liked it. Only because his aforementioned brothers, Alvin and Theodore, had left late morning to watch Eleanor Miller's soccer game. Eleanor was a member of the chipettes—3 sisters who were long-time friends of the chipmunks—and Theodore's girlfriend. She was also exceptional at soccer, making any game she played in an exciting one. This was part of the reason why the eldest chipmunk wanted to tag along too, but it was probably mostly because Brittany Miller, best friend of Alvin and eldest of the chipettes, never missed one of Eleanor's games, and Alvin never _ever _passed up a chance to annoy Brittany.

Simon had declined the invitation to join, because the thought of an empty house was all too appealing to him. Around noon, the middle Seville child had decided to snatch up the fleeting calm to get some work done. Unlike his siblings, the bespectacled chipmunk was not above doing homework on a Saturday; in fact, he quite enjoyed it, although he could never mention this fact aloud without people making fun of him.

Well, not all people. His best friend, Jeanette Miller, definitely was not among those who would make fun of his studious habits. In fact, he would be willing to bet that she might be spending her Saturday afternoon the exact way he was. Just one of the many things he really, ah, _appreciated_ about his female companion.

What had once been meticulous notes turned to absentminded scribbles as thoughts of Jeanette slowly began their infiltration of the young chipmunk's mind. He wondered what she really was doing at the moment, and how soon they could hang out again. He thought about how he, Jeanette, his brothers, and her two sisters had gone to the arcade yesterday after school. He and Jean had played a few rounds of air hockey there, and his brain was presently replaying the way she giggled whenever she managed to score a goal on him. A lazy smile somehow made its way across his face.

A few moments later, Simon blinked and awakened from his Jeanette-induced stupor. Looking down, he realized his pencil had unintentionally lazed across the page to form a doodle that greatly resembled the object of his affectionate thoughts. The teen groaned at the embarrassing evidence that he'd been thinking about Jeanette yet again. She was probably the one of the few things that could break his concentration like this, but it was only because she was such a kind, easygoing, genuine person whom he maybe happened to like-like a little.

Okay, he had a massive crush on her. Simon wasn't really one to be in denial about his own feelings—not that he would ever tell her about them.

It was hard to isolate the exact point when the he'd started to develop feelings for his brunette best friend, but if he had to guess, it was probably towards the end of middle school, a little bit of time after the scholarly boy had come up for air from his studies long enough to discover that while before he'd found girls interesting, now he found them… _very _interesting. After this discovery, he often found himself dwelling on the little detail that a certain chipette, whom he already spent a lot of time with, was, in fact, a girl. A very pretty girl. A very pretty girl whom he had a lot in common with and had a wonderful personality.

Well, it had all gone downhill from there.

Now the chipmunks and chipettes were all starting out their sophomore year of high school, and Simon had yet to clue Jeanette in to the fact that he wanted to be more than just friends with her. The trouble was, Simon's expertise was science and academia, not relationships. He had no idea how to go about letting her know how he felt without being completely awkward about it. Plus there was the pretty important matter of whether she reciprocated or not; jeopardizing what they had now really wasn't worth it if there was a chance that spilling the beans could cause their entire friendship to go up in flames.

Simon removed his glasses and tiredly cleaned them on his dark blue button up shirt, trying to return his thoughts to the world history textbook before him. He'd only managed to read a few more paragraphs before he heard rumbling on the stairs, and the door banged open a few seconds after, revealing his missing siblings. Alvin was slurping down what looked like a milkshake, while the youngest of the three was holding two of the sweet treats in his hands.

"Hi Simon!" Theodore chimed, walking over to the desk and holding one of the milkshakes out for the blue-clad chipmunk to take. "Here, we got this for you on our way home from the park."

Simon gratefully accepted the gift. "Thanks, Theo." He took a sip—ah, mint chocolate chip. His brothers knew him too well. "How was the soccer game?"

"Ellie's team kicked butt!" The plump boy dressed in green pumped a fist in the air. "She was amazing! She even scored two of the goals!"

Simon smiled. "That's great!"

Alvin, who was still by the door, parted from his milkshake long enough to make a skeptical face. "Si, don't tell me you've been sitting here doing homework the entire time we were gone," He said in lighthearted annoyance.

The boy in the glasses crossed his arms and wore a haughty expression. "Not… the _entire_ time."

"Oh, brother." Alvin stalked over to the desk and set his milkshake down. "It's a Saturday for pete's sake! Homework on a Saturday is strictly forbidden! Y'know, you really need to learn to live a little. "

Simon rolled his eyes. "I happen to be living just fine, thank you."

"Sure, of course _you'd _think that."

From there, an argument was born. It happened at least once a day, and Theodore, who'd long ago learned to ignore and keep out of his elder siblings' little spats, decided to direct his attention to a curious little drawing in the notebook on the table. A good-natured smile appeared between his chubby cheeks. He tapped who he knew to be the artist on the shoulder.

"Hey Simon, is that a drawing of Jeanette?" He asked innocently. "It's pretty good!"

"What? No!" The usually most composed one of the three boys flushed a light shade of pink, realizing his mistake of leaving his notebook out in the open too late. Already a quick-witted Alvin had grabbed the object in question and dashed away to the center of the bedroom to examine it. After a second the red hat-wearing teen sported an evil grin and a sickeningly knowing look. Simon could only let his head fall to the desk with a defeated thud, groaning in embarrassment.

"_This _is what you've been doing all day? Drawing pictures of _Jeanette_? Ha ha!" The teasing chipmunk slapped a hand to his forehead and laughed.

"Just give it back, Alvin," Simon growled.

Taking pity on his little brother, Alvin conceded and snapped the notebook shut, handing it back, still chuckling all the while. "You know Si, instead of just sitting here in pathetic lovesickness, maybe you should actually do what normal people do and make a move."

Simon scoffed. As if it was that easy. "I am not _lovesick_." He said meekly. Alvin and Theodore shot each other looks. "I saw that! Okay. So I like Jeanette a little. You both already knew it."

"A little?" Theodore quirked an eyebrow, causing the blushing chipmunk in front of him to rise out of his seat and start pacing in the center of the room.

"Oh, whatever! I can't just 'make a move,' as you so eloquently put it." Simon gazed sheepishly to the floor. It was hard for him to make admissions such as this. "I'm not… I'm not good at that sort of thing."

"Simon, Simon." Alvin walked over and slung an arm around his shoulders. "You really are hopeless when it comes to women, aren't you? As usual, you're making this a lot harder than it has to be. It's not that hard to ask out a girl. I've done it loads of times. And look at Theodore! Even he's done it!"

The green-clad boy stopped sipping from his milkshake to voice an indignant "hey!" Somewhat offended, the youngest chipmunk stalked from the room.

Simon's head was starting to hurt with all this eye-rolling he was doing. "Wasn't Eleanor the one who asked _him _out?" He deadpanned. Alvin waved him off.

"That's not the point. The point is that you need to man up and take action, before somebody beats you to it and steals your woman!"

"Jeanette's not my woman," Simon retorted feebly, trying not to let his brother's usually warped logic get to him. In actuality his brain was picturing horrible scenarios in which Jeanette had a boyfriend who wasn't him. Just the thought made him sick to his stomach. His heart dropped, and he sighed. "Well, what should I do?"

"Go over to her house, and ask her out on a date! Duh!"

Simon rubbed the back of his neck. This plan did not sound the least bit appealing. In fact, this whole 'make a move' business was beginning to make him queasy. How could he even begin to figure out what to say to her? "When do I do that?" he asked wearily.

Alvin clucked his tongue and shook his head in annoyance. "When do you think, genius? Right now!"

All the color drained from the brainy teen's face. "W-what! I can't just go over there right now—I-I don't even know what I'm going to say!" His head shifted crazily around the room, his glasses fell crooked, and he clutched the back of his neck for dear life. Alvin, sensing the obvious hysteria radiating off of his brother, grabbed him by the shoulders.

"Si! Snap out of it, you're going to hyperventilate!" At this Simon quieted and pushed his crooked glasses back into place with his index finger. "Since you _have_ to have a 'well thought out plan' for everything, just make one up and then do it tonight instead."

Simon swallowed. "Tonight?"

Alvin clapped him on the back and retrieved his milkshake, taking a long, irritating slurp. "Tonight. Just walk up to her and make that move. No big deal."

With that his cocky older brother left the room, off to do who-knows what, leaving Simon to simmer in the horror of the impossibly embarrassing task that he was suddenly put up to.

Making a move. On Jeanette. Apparently to Alvin this was 'no big deal.' Right.

Oh god, he was going to be sick.

* * *

Elohel. I just love pushing awkward nerdy characters out of their comfort zones. Review if you please!


	2. Chapter 2

howdy. Here's chapter 2, fresh hot n'steamy. Also I forgot to mention that this story's gonna switch POV's between Simon and Jean. And there might be some other tiny little random POV changes because i suck. Dandy!

* * *

A few hours later, Simon found himself on the Miller's front porch, one shaky finger poised to ring the doorbell. After a moment of thought he dropped his hand, heaved a sigh and tilted his head towards the sky. The day's light had almost faded, with ominous clouds threatening rain. _Such good omens, _Simon thought sarcastically.

Only minutes ago, Alvin had literally shoved him out of his own house. At the last minute, after spending the rest of the afternoon trying to formulate some sort of coherent and hopefully romantic speech to deliver to Jeanette, the bespectacled chipmunk had declared the entire plan wholly futile. His desk littered with crumpled papers containing scratched out first, second, third and fifteenth drafts of what he might want to say to her, he'd finally acknowledged that he was doomed to forever stink at romance. In a last ditch out effort, he'd told Alvin flat out that he simply refused to do it.

Alvin seemed to have anticipated this, because before he knew it, the front door was open and Simon felt himself get forcibly pushed outside. He'd spun around in shock to try and get back inside, but the door was already locked. "You said you'd do it Simon!" He heard Alvin yell to him from the other side.

"So? I say a lot of things!" The frantic teen pounded a fist against the door.

Alvin was merciless. "Don't come back until you have some results! Ya better hurry, looks like it might rain soon!"

He sighed and looked over his shoulder towards the chipette's house. A light was on upstairs; he pictured Jeanette up in her room, quietly reading a book. _Fine. I'm going to do this, _the boy in blue resolved. _But I'm not happy about it. _He thought resentfully. As he'd began to take leaden steps toward his destination, he gulped in air and felt his hands shake slightly. _Please, please just let her say yes._

At the present he'd been standing on the girls' front porch like a creep for a lot longer than was socially acceptable. Everything he planned to say to Jeanette before seemed stupid now that he was actually on her doorstep. He supposed he would just have to do things the Alvin way and 'wing it.'

The jittery chipmunk swallowed heavily.

_You're already here. Just do it!_ With that last thought, not to mention Alvin's voice screaming for 'results' in his brain, Simon mashed his thumb down on the doorbell. He only had to stand there sweating bullets for a few seconds before Miss Miller answered the door.

"Why Simon, dear, what brings you by?" The plump, elderly woman was wiping soapy hands onto her apron; she'd obviously just been doing the dishes. "Are you here for another one of your little study sessions with Netta?"

Lately, Simon had been coming over more frequently on school nights to hang out with Jeanette. They used the cover of 'study sessions' to placate Dave and Miss Miller; however, unlike most normal teenagers, they always did get some actual school work done before chatting or sitting down to a game of chess. Besides, as far as Simon and Jeanette were concerned, studying _was _hanging out.

Tonight, though, there were more pressing matters to attend to, so the young teen shook his head politely, adjusting his glasses. "Actually, I need to ask Jeanette a question. Is she available?"

"Of course, of course! Come right in!" Simon tried to look strictly business as he entered the house behind Miss Miller. "She's upstairs, you wait right here while I go fetch her for you." The faintly crazy lady patted his head before she turned her large figure around to climb the stairs. A vague thought crossed his mind that the woman would probably still see him and his brothers as perpetual 8-year-olds even when they hit their 30's. That was Miss Miller for you.

Once she was out sight, Simon clasped his hands behind his back and resumed his nervous sweating.

* * *

Jeanette was sitting contently on her bed, Eleanor next to her, when she heard the doorbell ring downstairs. Glancing up from the sewing project in her hands, she addressed her younger blonde sister.

"Who do you think that is? Ouch!" She'd poked herself with the needle for the fifth time that night. Sighing, the gangly brunette stuck her sore finger in her mouth.

"No idea, Theo's not coming over for our movie date until later tonight." Finally tearing her eyes away from her magazine, Eleanor took in the sight of her sister, who looked more frazzled than usual. Her hair was a mess, she had a bloody finger, and she was tangled up in a long, frilly pink garment. Yet again, their older sister Brittany had somehow convinced Jeanette to do her chores for her while she hung out at the mall. Ellie groaned and rolled her eyes, turning back to her reading. "I can't believe you're making _all_ the repairs to Brittany's clothes. Netta, why do you always let her talk you into doing things you don't want to do?"

Jeanette only shrugged and didn't look up. "Well, she did ask nicely."

"Oh Jen…" Ellie shook her head in exasperation.

Suddenly the door burst open, revealing their bumbling adoptive mother. "Jeanette," she sang, a grin on her bright red lips, "you have a gentleman caller waiting for you downstairs!"

The girl in the round pink glasses squeaked in shock, dropping the needle in the process and poking herself yet again. "Ow! What? I do?"

Miss Miller only laughed. "Oh calm down dear, it's just Simon Seville. Said he had something to ask you. Don't leave him waiting too long, now!" With that she returned to her dishes, leaving the two girls alone.

Jeanette blushed. Simon might as well be a 'gentleman caller' to her, since she was practically in love with the boy. Not that she would ever tell him that. She'd had some form of a crush on him since the fifth grade, and in all the years of being friends with him, he had never really seemed to want to pursue anything romantic with her. It made her a little sad, but hey, beggars couldn't be choosers; she didn't think she wasn't much of a catch. And definitely no beauty queen. Growing up with Brittany certainly proved that fact. At this point she had resigned herself to being appreciative of the close friendship she and Simon had cultivated over the years.

Still, Jeanette tried to look her best whenever she knew her grey-eyed friend would be coming around. And right now, what with this totally unplanned visit, she was a little taken by surprise, to say the least. "Oh, no," the weary chipette moaned, hopping off the bed and attempting to fix her hair. "Do I look completely horrible?"

The blonde on the bed smiled meaningfully. "Don't be silly Jeanette, you look fine." Hopping off the bed, she walked over to her sister, stood on her tiptoes, and smoothed out the taller girl's hair. "There, you're perfect. Any idea what he wants to ask you?"

Jeanette shook her head, heading towards the door. "No idea..."

"Hey," Eleanor said in a low voice, a wide grin on her face. "Maybe he's finally going to ask you out!"

The brunette rolled her eyes as she left the room. "Not likely, Ellie." The door shut behind her, and Eleanor, who wished her sister would have a bit more faith in herself, frowned glumly. Unfortunately, self-confidence and Jeanette didn't usually go hand in hand.

"You'd be surprised, Netta," the curvy girl mumbled to herself, gazing back down at her magazine.

* * *

As soon as Jeanette laid eyes on Simon from the top of the stairs, she knew her best friend wasn't himself. For one thing, he had a kind of crazy look in his eye, like the sky was about to fall on top of him any minute. For another, he didn't seem to be able to stand still, and he only ever fidgeted when he was nervous about something. But nervous about what? About whatever he wanted to ask her?

Her heart began to pick up speed. Maybe Ellie _was_ on to something with her comment. She struggled to not get her hopes up.

When she took a step the two chipmunks immediately made eye contact with one another and smiled. Although Jeanette should've been watching her two left feet rather than Simon, because she missed a step halfway down and ended up falling the rest of the way down the stairs on her butt. Without missing a beat the taller boy was at her side, helping her to her feet.

"You okay, Jeanette?" He probably should have been used to her frequent falling by now, but he always seemed worried when it happened.

"Oh, yeah, yup. I'm fine," came her breathless response. The girl stood back up quickly, red in the face and trying to casually adjust her glasses. Curse her unremitting klutziness. Sheepishly peeking out from under her thick bangs, she gave him a little wave. "Hi."

He let out a chuckle. "Hi."

Jeanette smiled at him gratefully, averting her eyes. If there was any person in this world who really appeared not to mind her distinct lack of grace, it was Simon. She wondered briefly how he would react if he were to find out how much that really meant to her.

Glancing back upwards, she noticed him staring at her. Yeah, something was definitely off about him today; usually by now he would be chattering away about something or other. "So," the chipette cleared her throat, "was there something you wanted to ask me?"

The boy in front of her seemed to come back to himself quite abruptly. "Oh-er-yes, there is." He took off his thick black lenses, cleaning them on his shirt and avoiding her eyes. "Could we perhaps talk outside?"

"Sure, of course…" Jeanette replied, feeling apprehensive as she led the way out onto the front porch. Now he had her more worried than excited. His face looked grim and she couldn't catch his gaze; it was as if they actually were dating and he'd just told her that 'they needed to talk.'

Jeanette closed the door soundly behind her, turning to face her companion. "What is it? Is there something wrong?"

Simon shook his head firmly. "No, no, there's nothing wrong. Uh…" He looked really, really lost—very atypical for the normally confident teen.

Jeanette raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure. I-um-okay…" He was actually stuttering now. What?

Finally the boy took a deep breath and raised his gaze to look directly at her. "Jeanette, we've been friends for a very long time, correct?"

The question surprised her. "Yes, we have," she managed to get out. Her heart resumed its pounding against her ribcage, her breath was catching in her throat. His gray-blue eyes were fixed steadily on hers and she knew she was beginning to turn red. Was he going where she thought he was going with this?

"Yes, so, um, please try not to be too scared off when I ask you what I'm about to ask, okay?" Simon seemed to steel himself. "Jeanette. Would you maybe—er—could you possibly…" He trailed off, looking away. He was definitely blushing, too! This was the moment! Jeanette was bursting with happiness but did her best to mask it.

"Yes?" she encouraged gently.

"I… would you…" Simon squeezed his eyes shut. "Would-you-happen-to-know-what-the-chemistry-homework-was?"

Jeanette deflated quickly. It had all come out in a jumbled sentence, but she could've sworn she heard something about homework in there. "Um, come again?" she asked meekly.

"The-the assignment for chemistry." Simon said in a weirdly almost too casual tone, clasping his hands behind his back. "I didn't write it down in class Thursday, I was wondering if you knew what it was."

Jeanette could only just stare blankly for a few seconds before she found her voice again. "Oh. Yeah… hang on a minute."

The young chipette tried not to let him see the disappointed slump in her shoulders as she left him on the porch to go rummage through her backpack for her chemistry notebook. Never in her life had she hated chemistry so much.

She ripped out a piece of notebook paper and began writing out the homework assignment, trying her best to shake off the hurt she was feeling, although it was easier said than done. She felt like such an idiot, getting her hopes up like that. Only to be asked a question about school! Pathetic.

But shouldn't she be used to situations like this by now? Simon saw her as a friend. Friends helped each other out with school; they didn't go out on dates.

_Oh, pull yourself together already._

Jeanette sighed and forced herself to put on a cheerful face as she opened the front door again. "Si?" She inquired when he didn't notice her reappearance. Simon, who'd sat down on the steps, chin in his hands, jumped and turned his head to face her. She sat down next to him and handed him the paper, shooting him a little smile.

"Oh… thanks." He took it from her, his features fixed in an unreadable expression.

"I'll admit the fact that _you_ forgot to write down the homework is definitely a first, but why were you so worried I would be scared off?" The girl asked jokingly, playing with the sleeves of her baggy sweater. "Seems a little dramatic to me."

His reply was a half-hearted laugh. "Ha, uh, no reason really. Sorry, I kind of lost my head there for a second."

"Don't worry, it happens to the best of us." She patted his shoulder and he just smiled at her in response, causing her heart to give a little flutter, much to her chagrin—those stupid butterflies were becoming harder to ignore. She grasped for something else to say. "Are you ready for the chem test next week?"

He seemed grateful for the subject change. "I've started looking back at my notes already, but I definitely have some more studying to do."

"Yeah, me too. I'm a little nervous about it- Mr. Wright warned us that it would be a lot harder than our last test."

Simon chuckled. "Well didn't you ace that last one? I'm certain you'll do fine."

"I hope so." She replied, picking at a loose thread on her skirt. "Anyway, if you're not doing anything tomorrow, maybe we could study together. I know I always do better on tests when we do."

"Sure!" he answered enthusiastically. "Your house or mine?"

Pleased at his quick response, Jeanette tapped her chin in thought. The hurt feelings from before had faded and she was thankful that the air between them had reverted back to normal. "Hmm… let's do mine. Ellie's planning on baking all day so we'll have plenty of brain food."

"Sounds good to me." Simon agreed, grinning. "Around three okay?"

"Three's perfect," The chipette in the pink spectacles nodded, happy they would be having one of their traditional Simon-Jeanette study sessions tomorrow.

At that moment Miss Miller stuck her head out the door to call Jeanette to dinner, so the two friends stood up, preparing to part ways.

"So I'll be seeing you tomorrow?" Simon asked, looking pensive again.

"Tomorrow," Jeanette confirmed, waving goodbye. When she was back inside the house and the door was closed, she took a moment to lean back against it and exhale contentedly.

_Okay, I guess chemistry isn't _too_ bad, _the brunette thought, looking forward to the next day.

* * *

As he made the walk back across the street, hands in pockets, the fleeting happiness Simon felt from making plans with Jeanette had all but worn off, leaving his dismal and highly embarrassing attempt at asking her out to plague his mind.

_Well, I can file that whole attempt under 'failure.'_

How he loathed failure.

The nighttime sky was just beginning to drizzle as a defeated Simon trudged back to his house. He'd just made it back to his own yard when a gloomy thought occurred to him. _Oh no, _he rolled his eyes in exasperation. _Alvin's going to want to know how it went. I can't let him see this stupid homework assignment…_ _maybe if I'm lucky he'll be in the living room watching television and I can slip past him._

Raindrops were just starting to fog up the lenses of his glasses as he approached the front door. Carefully and silently, he turned the knob and eased it open—

—to be greeted with the sight of Alvin's grinning face.

_Great._

"So how'd it go? Did you ask her?"

Well, no sense in lying to him about that part of the story. "No, not yet." Simon tried to sound nonchalant as he brushed past the shorter, hat-adorned teen. Said teen frowned, shutting the door and crossing his arms.

"What? Why not? That's the whole reason you went over there!"

Simon merely shrugged. "Wasn't the right time."

"Oh please." Alvin snorted and put on his most annoying smirk. "You, my dear brother, chickened out."

The tallest chipmunk let out an indignant "I did _not_" just as Theodore entered from the living room, a large chocolate chip cookie in his hand.

"Who chickened out over what?" He asked through a mouthful of cookie.

"I didn't chicken ou-"

"-Simon did!" Alvin was quick to interrupt his brother's protest. "He went over to the chipettes' house to ask out Jeanette, but… hey, what's that in your hand?"

Simon, who had given up on this whole conversation, had set about drying the water off his glasses. Unfortunately this was a two-handed job, and the boy had accidentally revealed the sheet of paper Jeanette had given to him in the process. When he realized this he quickly thrust it back behind him, but the damage had already been done. "It's nothing." He said nervously.

That sly grin was back on Alvin's face. "Oh really? Could it be a looooove note?"

Simon backed away. "It's none of your business!"

Theodore could only look and munch on helplessly as Alvin lunged for it and his two brothers were thrust into a wrestling match over a piece of notebook paper. Somehow, the eldest chipmunk emerged victorious, scuttling away from the taller boy in blue and reading the paper's contents out loud.

"Read pages 65 to 89 and complete chapter questions… finish lab report on neutralization…?" Alvin scrunched up his eyebrows, confused. "What kind of love note is this?"

"The science-y kind! I think it's sweet!" Theodore interjected, finishing off his cookie.

Both boys looked expectantly at Simon, who stood there awkwardly, adjusting his glasses and shifting his gaze around the room. The other two only had to stare at him a few more seconds before he cracked. "I choked okay!" He threw out his hands in frustration. "I was going to ask, but then she was just standing and staring at me, and I couldn't do it—so, so I asked for the chemistry homework instead. There. Happy now?"

Honestly, he had no idea why he had just yelled all of this to his brothers. Now they were just staring blankly at him, probably shocked at his outburst. He was usually so calm and collected while dealing with things… until it came to girls. Scratch that—until it came to Jeanette. His crush on Jeanette made him do stupid things.

He blinked. They were still staring at him. And they stared. And stared.

Then Alvin was abruptly doubled over, holding his sides in full out hysterical laughter, while Theo giggled into his hands. When the laughing didn't stop after a few moments, Simon became a little peeved. When it didn't stop after a full 15 seconds, he was just plain angry. "Would you two knock it off!"

Alvin tried to recover from his laughter and wiped a tear from his eye. "S-sorry Si, it's just—ya left to go ask a girl out and came back with homework!" He thrust the paper back at the blue-clad chipmunk and pointed at him. "Only you!" Another wave of heavy chortling burst forth from the red-clad chipmunk, and in that moment Simon wanted nothing more than to strangle his older brother.

"Shut up, Alvin." Fuming, the boy tossed the sheet of paper with the assignment written in Jeanette's delicate handwriting over his shoulder, pushed passed his brothers, and began stomping up the stairs.

A sympathetic Theodore picked up the paper from the floor. "Wait!" he called up the stairs, waving the sheet over his head. "Don't you need this?"

Fortunately unbeknownst to Alvin and Theodore, Simon turned red and paused on the top step. "No," he mumbled without looking back. "I already completed that assignment 3 days ago." There were a few seconds of silence before Alvin dropped to the ground in more laughter, Theodore averted his eyes uncomfortably, and Simon finished the journey to his room, cheeks burning. Once he was safely inside, the humiliated teenager shut the door soundly, paced over to the third bed in the room, and proceeded to collapse on it facedown with a miserable sigh.

Oh, who was he kidding? Alvin was right. When it came to women—well, when it came to trying to make something happen with Jeanette—he was hopeless. Absolutely hopeless.

* * *

Yes Simon, you are hopeless. But that's what makes you desirable.

dammit, i'm starting to hate this story, but I figure it's cause I can't stand my own writing. I'm determined to push through and finishhhhh… review my duckies.


	3. Chapter 3

Rarrrhghghghhhh this was hard to get through. The beginning and ending just came so easily, and this... didn't. le poo.

enjoy, and thanks for all the lovely reviews so far! chipmunks fo lyfe.

* * *

For once in his teenaged life, Simon had zero desire to do something productive with his time. So he simply laid there, face buried in the blue bedspread, glasses tossed aside. And why not? Today had been abysmal to say the least. He'd spent most of it feeling mortified, terrified, like an idiot in general… or some sad, sad combination of the three. All thanks to Alvin's insistence that he act on his feelings for his best friend.

If there was one thing the extremely intellectual chipmunk hated, it was feeling like an idiot—but boy, was he out of his element with this whole situation. Why, why did he have to be the only one of his brothers seemingly born without a romantic bone in his body?

It was stupid. So very stupid.

Simon decided he hadn't been allowed nearly enough time to mope about his pathetic girl troubles before he heard the door open and two pairs of footsteps walk in the room. Though he didn't watch them come over to sit on either side of him—he refused to budge from lying prostrate on his stomach—the distinct creaking and shifting of weight on the bed alerted the middle child to his brothers' positions. When he didn't react to their presence, somebody poked him in the back. A muffled groan escaped his lips.

"Is it physically impossible for you guys to leave me alone for more than _two minutes_?"

"Sorry, Simon," came Theodore's earnest voice from his right. "We wanted to make sure you were all right."

Simon reluctantly pushed himself back into a sitting position, placing his glasses back in their rightful spot and adjusting them slightly. "Well, I'm fine." He said in a clipped tone. He hadn't quite forgiven his siblings for their earlier laughter at his expense.

"You don't sound fine," Theodore mumbled, wringing his hands.

"Don't worry Theo, he's just mad because he choked at something for once." Alvin laughed and slapped the blue-shirted teen on the back. "Welcome to the world of normal people, bro!"

At this Simon only glared in stony silence before sliding of the bed and heading for the door. Really, he wasn't in the mood to sit here and be insulted. What he needed was to feel himself again. Maybe he could head down to the basement and work on that experiment he'd been perfecting for weeks. Just him and his lab and science.

_Science._ He quirked a smile, putting a hand on the bedroom door to leave. _Now that's something I _know_ I won't screw up at._

Before Simon could be reunited with his beloved basement lab, Alvin was rushing in front of him, blocking his exit, a sheepish smile spread across his face.

"Aw, come on Si, don't be like that." His older brother gripped his shoulders and the flustered chipmunk felt himself being steered back inside the room. "So ya tried to ask Jeanette out and blew it. No big deal. Happens to everyone." Alvin briefly let go of Simon to tap his chin with one hand. "Except me, of course."

Simon raised a brow, unimpressed. Sensing that Alvin's attempt to cheer their brother up was headed for failure, Theodore rushed in to compensate. "Maybe if you tell us what happened, we could figure out what went wrong?"

"I'd prefer not to relive it."

Alvin released his grip on him and he found himself sitting on the middle bed, facing Theodore. The still standing chipmunk turned his hat around, sinking down next to Simon and elbowing him lightly. "Ah, don't be such a wet blanket. I am fully prepared to give you expert lady advice, so give us the details already!"

_Expert lady advice from Alvin. _Simon rested his chin on his hand and rolled his eyes. _Sounds extremely unappealing. _Still, he found himself relenting to his brothers. After all, they were only trying to help. At least, Theodore was.

"Oh, fine… but there's not really much to tell. When it came time to ask her, I just couldn't get the words out. End of story." Much to his annoyance, the boy felt his face getting hot at the memories of his earlier blunder. Just great. He tilted his head downward, attempting to conceal his blush; of course, Alvin caught it and smirked.

"Wow, you're all red just reliving it, aren't you? Y'know, it's kind of weird seeing you like this."

So far, this 'advice' was not helping. Simon lifted his gaze to the self-proclaimed lady expert and scowled. "Seeing me like how?"

"Like… all shy, and stuff." Theodore piped up. "You're usually so confident and, and you always seem to know what you're doing… but when it comes to Jeanette, you're shyer than me!"

"_Thank you_ for your enlightening conclusions!" Simon pinched the bridge of his nose. If only he'd escaped to his basement lab while he had the chance. "And how, may I ask, is reminding me of my imperfections supposed to be helping me?"

Theodore recoiled from his harsh tone, but Alvin was unfazed. "Because, oh smart one, we can't help you if we don't know what the problem is!"

Simon deflated, removing his glasses and halfheartedly cleaning them with a cloth as he tried to figure out how to put his dilemma into words. "It's not as if I'm always shy around her," he muttered. "It's only when I try to, well, as you'd say, 'put the moves on her.'" The choice of phrasing sent Theodore into a fit of giggles, which was abruptly silenced after he was sent a particularly withering glare. "Look, the only reason I'm apprehensive about this is because I'm afraid I'll scare her off! I mean look at me! I'm not exactly setting any standards for boyfriend material, here."

His lack of self-confidence was a kind of pitiful, but hey, he was only being logical. During the course of his 15 years, he'd been turned down for enough school dances to learn that in general, girls found him dull and unattractive. He didn't get the girl. Alvin got the girl. Instead, he got the grades. It was just the way things were.

However, Alvin wasn't buying into the pity fest.

"Gimme a break Simon, why are you worried about any of that stuff? Jeanette obviously digs nerds, I mean, she's almost as nerdy as you are! You two are perfect for each other." Not sure whether to be reassured or offended, Simon only raised his eyebrows as Alvin continued. "Now, the key to your romantic pursuits is subtlety."

"Subtlety?" The bespectacled boy mimicked.

"Yep. I think your problem was that you were being too serious and intense about the whole asking thing, like you always are with everything else you do. Instead of just outright asking her to be your girlfriend, you should, I duno, casually ask her to do something Friday." Theodore nodded enthusiastically in agreement while Simon still looked hesitant. "Do something that could be a date but could also be two friends just hanging out. _Then _make your move. Any suggestions on where to go?"

It actually sounded like good advice. And coming from Alvin? The planets must be in some special alignment.

Simon thought about where he could take Jeanette on a casual, sort-of date. "Well," he said optimistically after a moment, "There _is_ this new Imax film playing at the science museum on the Cretaceous period that I really—"

"You gotta be kidding!" Alvin blurted, jumping to his feet. "You can't take someone on a date to the science museum—that's crazy! It's automatic date-suicide! Besides, those science-y imax movies are for losers." The fast-talking chipmunk seemed to catch himself and then have the decency to feel guilty for his inconsiderate remarks. Simon folded his arms irritably.

"I'm already well aware I'm a loser Alvin, there's no need for you to rub it in."

Alvin sat back down next to him, looking a little embarrassed. "Oh, you know that's not what I meant Si… but I was thinking more along the lines of like… the skating rink. Or a regular movie."

"Or you could take her to eat at the diner!" Theodore added. "Nothing like a cheeseburger and chocolate milkshake to break the ice and talk about important relationship stuff!" The youngest chipmunk patted his belly.

"Exactly!" Alvin nudged Simon's shoulder good-naturedly. "Sounds doable, right?"

"I guess so," He replied, perking up a bit. "And I am going over to her house tomorrow to study. I suppose could ask then."

"Perfect! Ask her then!" Theodore chirped happily.

Thanks to his brothers' seemingly simple advice, Simon was regaining a bit of his confidence; he only hoped it would last through tomorrow's study session with Jeanette. Really, all he had to do was ask her to hang out somewhere in town, one on one. They'd done it before occasionally, so of course it was doable. His logical mind temporarily at ease, the tallest chipmunk stood to his full height, full of resolve.

"Okay, I'll do it."

* * *

The next day, a predictably punctual Simon showed up on the Millers' doorstep at exactly 3 o'clock, arms full of notes and textbooks. An eager Jeanette answered the door with a smile, and the two chipmunks began their study ritual just as they always did.

It was adding up to be a good Sunday, Jeanette reflected happily, hours later. The pair had started off with preparing for the chemistry test. They seemed to have a perfect balance of intellect—sometimes he would go over a concept with her, and other times, she with him—and it wasn't long before they both felt confident with the material. After that, they'd settled at the dining room table with a few issues on ancient Egypt from Jeanette's National Geographic collection. Now they were flipping through the pages, occasionally sharing random facts or pictures with one another, all the while laughing and chatting about anything and everything.

To others, an afternoon like this might sound boring, but to the tall brunette chipette, it was perfect. Just him and her and some books. Very fitting for the two brainy best friends. Simon's weird behavior from the previous day must have been a one-time deal, because today he was acting completely normal. Jeanette let out a quiet, contented sigh, turning the page of the magazine in her hands.

"Wow, look at this, Si." She said, pointing out a picture of a mummified dog surrounded by jewels.

Simon leaned over to look at Jeanette's copy of National Geographic, adjusting his glasses. "An amazing specimen," he agreed. "You know, mummification of pets back then was quite common, and the pet would be killed solely for the purpose of moving on to the next life with its owner…" He kept talking, and while someone like Alvin or Brittany abhorred having to listen to his educational spiels, Jeanette, ever willing to learn, positively enjoyed it.

Simon cut himself off when a mouth-watering smell wafted through the room. A moment later, Eleanor bustled in with a giant plate of warm peanut butter cookies. "Dig in, guys!" She said cheerfully, setting the plate before the two studious chipmunks. "Whatever you don't eat, I'm taking over to Theodore later."

"Thank you, Eleanor," said Simon politely, as both he and Jeanette immediately reached for the spoils. Baked goods from Eleanor were top notch, and always went fast in the Miller household. Jeanette tried not to blush as her fingers brushed his when they both went for the same cookie.

"These are delicious, Ellie!" The brunette gushed after taking a bite, watching Simon nod enthusiastically in agreement, his mouth full.

"Thanks!" The curvy blonde giggled, turning to head out the door. "I'll be upstairs if you need me."

They watched her go and then turned to each other. "She certainly bakes a mean cookie," Simon chuckled, reaching for another one. "Theodore is one lucky guy."

Jeanette raised an amused eyebrow. "And what do you mean by that?"

He immediately backpedaled, looking flustered. "I-I just meant, in terms of having a steady supply of baked goods. Delicious ones. You know what I mean."

She only sniggered, keen on poking a bit of fun at him; the boy was thick-skinned and extremely hard to tease, so whenever the opportunity arose she jumped at it. "Why, Simon, you're not jealous of our younger siblings, are you?"

"Of course not," He mumbled, turning the page of his magazine.

She leaned in closer, grinning. "And you're sure?"

He rolled his eyes and inclined his head towards hers. "I'm sure." For a second they simply stared at one another, joking expressions on their faces. But Jeanette had to break her sea-green eyes away from his grey ones when the staring went on a few seconds too long, causing her cheeks to glow with warmth.

Focusing back on the article about ancient Egyptian booby traps in front of her, Jeanette fought off the blush. Their little exchange had felt… downright _flirty. _She shook her head, ordering herself to stop reading too much into it.

A minute later, Simon's voice broke through the silence.

"…Jeanette?"

"Hm?"

Initially, she didn't look up from the article she was reading. But when he never responded and she sensed his eyes on her, the most reserved of the chipettes was prompted to turn towards her companion—to discover him staring at her with the most intense expression she'd ever seen him wear.

As their eyes met, Simon seemed to come back to himself, but didn't look away. A flash of uncertainty crossed his face, only visible for a split second before it was masked behind that same layer of intensity. She would ask what was wrong, if only her voice were working properly…. and was it just her, or was he slowly leaning forward?

Wait. Could he be…?

Then his eyes fell shut and he tilted his head and Jeanette thought she might have a heart attack. Yup. He was definitely leaning in to kiss her.

She only had half a second to process this revelation before Simon had his lips pressed firmly against hers.

Oh. _Oh. _

Jeanette was frozen in blissful heart threatened to pound out of her chest. Butterflies thrashed around in her stomach. And when she felt him gently bring a hand to her cheek, she thought she might faint.

He was kissing her! They were kissing! What could only be described as a girly squeal echoed throughout her brain, filling the girl in the pink spectacles with a giddy warmth. Then it occurred to her that good kissing required action from both parties involved, and she herself had yet to break out of her frozen stupor; already a few seconds had ticked by without any reaction on her part.

_Don't just sit there! _Her mind screamed. _Move you idiot!_

RIght as the determination to kiss him back with everything she had swept over her, lashes fluttering closed, the living room double doors flew open. And a downward spiral of events commenced.

"Dear, have you seen—_oh, my stars_!"

The two teens jumped apart—well, more like a beet-red Simon jerked his head backwards, sending his glasses askew—but Miss Miller had already gotten more than an eyeful of their lip lock. Jeanette winced, witnessing her mother's wrinkled face distort from shock, to confusion, to… anger?

Uh oh. This couldn't be good.

"Wha- what's going- you two are supposed to be studying in here!" The elderly woman sputtered, her shrill voice sounding even more piercing than usual.

"We were—w-we are!" Jeanette squeaked, looking to Simon for back up. However the boy next to her seemed to be trapped in a state of shock, staring wide-eyed at Miss Miller with his mouth agape.

"That's not what it looked like from where I was standing, young lady! I- wait a minute," Suddenly Miss Miller paused her oncoming rant, mulling something over in her mind. Then, although Jeanette couldn't imagine what, _something_ dawned on the former flapper, causing an ominous look to darken her makeup-caked features. Simon and Jeanette dared to glance at each other, clearly dreading what might come next.

"Wait. Now, wait, wait just a darn second!" Miss Miller rumbled. "_So._ When Simon here comes to the house 5 times a week, and you two go into your room and shut the door, are you _studying_ then too? Is that what the young people are calling it these days? _Studying?"_

Jeanette's eyes widened to dinner plate proportions, her entire body flushing redder than it probably ever had before; a quick peek at Simon confirmed that he was suffering the exact same mortified reaction.

The implications were clear. Witnessing this one little kiss had somehow caused Miss Miller to assume that the two friends' frequent study sessions involved… well… a _lot_ more than studying.

And the woman was obviously not happy about this brash assumption, untrue as it was. Through her haze of embarrassment, a panic-stricken Jeanette watched Miss Miller enter into her notoriously extreme protective mother mode. This particular 'mode' was infamous to all three chipettes, because whenever it surfaced, the little sanity their mother possessed vanished, and things always, always ended in mayhem.

Apparently this time was no different. A furious Miss Miller lunged towards a bucket in the corner that held umbrellas, pulled out the biggest, pinkest, frilliest one, and rounded on Simon, who didn't seem able to comprehend the sheer absurdity of what was happening.

The 70-something-year-old lady pointed the umbrella threateningly at the hapless male chipmunk, a wild aura emanating from her.

"Step away from my baby!"

Jeanette covered her face with her hands.

_This is not happening!_

* * *

Simon rarely ever cursed—Alvin was usually the one who claimed the title of family potty mouth—but as Miss Miller rounded upon him, crazed look in her eyes and big pink umbrella raised, only 2 words managed to form in his mind.

_Oh, shit!_

The umbrella came down swiftly, giving the thoroughly freaked-out chipmunk only seconds to dodge the blow. He attempted to make a mad dash for the door but the old lady sidestepped him, thwarting his escape attempt and performing another mad swing with her makeshift weapon. For a person her age, she certainly had pretty good reflexes.

"M-Miss Miller! Please!" Simon cried in a desperate effort to reason with the enraged woman. His efforts were proven fruitless as he yelped and was forced to duck under another swing, losing his glasses in the process.

Miss Miller seemed to be beyond reason, lost off in another world where Simon had all of a sudden become a monstrous creature who would stop at nothing to steal her daughter's innocence; a world where she was the last thing standing between a teenage boy and her baby girl's honor. This entire ordeal hadn't merely been blown out of proportion—oh no, the proportion had been blown to smithereens. And then smeared all over the ground.

Jeanette, who'd been observing the makeshift umbrella assault wearing an expression that looked like a mix of humiliation and horror, finally sprang into action when her mother backed him into a corner. Craning his neck around the menacing pink umbrella that was bearing down on him, Simon watched his crush's blurry figure rush forward, her arms waving frantically.

"Stop, stop!" The chipette pleaded. "Miss Miller, don't! Simon and I are just friends, that's all!"

At her sudden declaration, the boy's bewilderment was instantly replaced by a much more miserable feeling. He averted his eyes to the floor, blinking rapidly. His chest was overtaken with an aching tightness as he stood there trying to digest Jeanette's words.

She just wanted to be friends. And that was all.

Until this moment, heartbreak wasn't an emotion Simon was particularly familiar with. If he were to be forced to describe it, it sort of felt like a hard punch to the gut. A very, very hard punch.

On the other hand, Miss Miller wasn't buying into Jeanette's little announcement in the least. "Oh, 'just friends' my rear end!" She scoffed, leaving the dejected chipmunk rooted to his corner and rounding on her daughter. "Last I checked, you don't go kissing your friends, young lady! And all this time I thought the two of you were such diligent workers, how wrong I was! To think I let the two of you "study" together in your bedroom!"

At the word 'study', the old woman used flagrant air quotes, causing Simon and, from what he could see, Jeanette, to again turn a deep scarlet.

This was… this was insane. Surely normal, rational people didn't make such crazy assumptions from just one kiss? But of course, this was Miss Miller. When had she ever been considered completely sane?

"We are going to have a long talk about this, Jeanette Miller! And you, Simon Seville!" He'd only just located his glasses and put them back on when she whirled back around to glower down at him, and he was once again a deer in the headlights. "I might expect this deceptive male teenage behavior from Alvin, but coming from you! Why, I can hardly bear it!" Miss Miller raised a hand dramatically to her forehead, looking as if she was about to pass out.

"But—" he tried.

"No buts! Now out! Out of this house!"

No, no, this was all wrong. He couldn't just leave without debunking the woman's warped conclusions! "Miss Miller, if you'd just let me—"

She wasn't having it. Any of it. Her nostrils flared with rage and her eyes filled up with a degree of madness that the terrified boy had never seen before, and prayed he would never have to see again. "OUT!" The protective mother bellowed, bringing down the absurdly frilly pink umbrella.

Simon had no choice. He broke out into what he was sure had to be the most awkward fast-walk ever—until that incessant umbrella swatted him in the butt. Then, like a horse at the crack of a whip, he took off running. Past an insane Miss Miller. Past a bewildered Jeanette. He knew he had to be the color of a fire engine when he almost bowled over a clueless Brittany on his way out the door.

"Simon! What is _wrong _with you?" Brittany yelled after his retreating form, clearly offended. He didn't answer her. He didn't even look back. It was as if legs had a mind of their own, because his brain was so muddled that he certainly didn't feel in control of his actions at the moment.

Only when he was inside the safe haven of home, heaving for breath against the freshly slammed door, did he stop running. While his heart raced, his mind raced even faster, trying frantically to make some sort of sense out of the ludicrous events that had just occurred.

So far, all he could piece together was that this was, beyond any and all doubt, the absolute worst day of his life. Worse than the time Alvin had sat on his science project, the one he'd worked on for months in the 7th grade, minutes before it was to be judged at the science fair. Even worse than the time he and his brothers were captured and tied to a pole during their trip around the world years ago, seconds away from falling into a pit of ravenous crocodiles.

The sight of Miss Miller's crazed face appeared in his mind's eye, while the words '_just friends, that's all'_ played on repeat in his brain… he sighed glumly.

Yeah. Much, much worse than the crocodiles.

The breathless chipmunk slid down to the wood floor of the front hall, his back against the door, and rested his head on his knees. Luckily he knew no one was home at the moment—Dave had taken his brothers to a movie—so he didn't have to worry about anyone finding him in this embarrassing position. He'd had enough embarrassment for one lifetime, thank you very much.

His breathing finally returned to normal, leaving the house in a cold silence, and Simon with an empty, sick feeling in his gut.

Somehow, he'd always imagined his first official kiss going a little better.

It should've been the perfect moment. They were alone, they'd been flirting a little… her lips were right there in front of him… it seemed like a good idea at the time. So for once Simon decided to throw caution to the wind and just go for it.

Then, chaos.

If he'd known that acting on his impulse to kiss Jeanette would result in chaos, he never would have done it. Now… now, he wasn't sure what was going to happen between them. He was the one who initiated the whole thing, effectively revealing his secret feelings for her. But she didn't kiss him back. Then she'd said quite clearly that they were friends, and that's _all_ they were… so he could only conclude that she didn't return his feelings.

How had he ever been under the impression that there was a chance Jeanette might like him back? It was so stupid of him. Just stupid wishful thinking.

Ugh. Why didn't he just follow Alvin's advice about being subtle? What did he have to go and kiss her for?

A depressing thought occurred to him. Frankly, none of that mattered, anyway. Jeanette just wanted to be friends. No pointless plan was going to change that. And he probably sufficiently ruined any chance for them to have a normal friendship again.

She'd never look at him the same. She'd probably avoid him. No more study sessions. No more late night phone calls. No more going to the arcade to play air hockey, and getting to hear her laugh. No more best friend. This whole 'make a move' idea had been nothing but a huge mistake.

All Simon wanted to do was bury his nose in a book and forget this day ever happened.

Ha... if only it was that simple.

Numb with hurt, the miserable boy picked himself up off the floor, dragged his feet up the stairs, and disappeared into his bedroom.

* * *

oh, the sweet sweet angst. haha damn i'm mean to Simon in this. i hope miss miller was in character, but who knows. i feel like is something she might do, though... she was already plenty crazy when the munks were 8, and now it's 7 years later and she's 7 years crazier.

there's not too much more to go. maybe 1 or 2 more chapters. yeahhhh. review!


	4. Chapter 4

blarrrrrghh here's chapter fo. I feel like this chapter is just a bunch of boring contemplation and bitching, but whatevs, it was necessary.

Read onnnn my pretties (and thanks for the reviews!)

* * *

By the time Miss Miller wrapped up her long, embarrassing lecture about the birds, the bees, and everything in between, Jeanette felt emotionally exhausted. She'd tried her best to convince her mother that the kiss was a first time occurrence, and up until that point her and Simon's relationship had been nothing but platonic, but apparently her best just wasn't good enough. Sure, Miss Miller seemed to believe she was telling the truth, but Jeanette could sense that her slightly batty guardian was still suspicious of the whole situation.

Nevertheless, the most extreme of the crazy fog in the woman's eyes had cleared, and she had the good sense to admit she might've been wrong to jump to conclusions and… er, chase Simon out of the house with an umbrella.

"I don't know what came over me," Miss Miller said from her spot next to Jeanette on the living room couch, fanning herself with one hand. "I guess I just thought that boy had been trying to pull one over on me so he could take advantage of you, what with all those private study meetings you two have."

"I keep telling you, Simon and I really are just studying during those things." The brunette girl replied gently, covering up her frustration over having to repeat herself. "The most we do other than homework is talk, or look through books, or play chess."

"I know dear. But it's not as if those Seville boys haven't tried to pull tricks on me before. And you know boys and those male teenaged hormones."

At the mention of hormones, Jeanette blushed, just as she had throughout the entirety of Miss Miller's birds and bees speech. She was uncomfortable enough having to hear about all that stuff in health class, but having to hear her mother keep bringing it up in reference to Simon? Just let her disappear into the couch, already!

Miss Miller was oblivious to her daughter's mortification, and kept on talking. "Either way, Jeanette dear, you're to keep the door open when Simon comes over to study."

"But… we aren't even dating," Jeanette protested timidly, staring down at her shoes.

"Yes, well, by the looks of what I saw today, Simon would certainly like to be." Miss Miller quipped with a knowing smile, causing the girl to shift awkwardly in her seat. "So from now on, the same rules apply to you two that apply to Eleanor and Theodore. Are we clear?"

"Yes, ma'am," Jeanette dutifully responded without raising her eyes. So now she and Simon would be considered a couple under this roof. It was a weird thought.

Miss Miller gave her daughter's hair an affectionate stroke and stood up to leave.

"Okay then, dearie, I'm going to go phone the Sevilles' and apologize to that poor boy. Lord knows I probably scared the pants off him." With that the bumbling woman headed for the door to the kitchen, fluffing her tall gray hairdo as she walked, which had poofed out considerably during the earlier chaos.

Seconds after her mother left the room, before Jeanette could even take a breath and begin to dissect what had happened that day, she heard a shrill '_ouch_!' come from behind the antique armchair in the corner. Another second passed and Brittany and Eleanor came tumbling out from their hiding place, looking fairly irritated with each other.

"You just crushed my hand with your foot, Brit!" Eleanor huffed indignantly.

"Well your hand was in the way!" Brittany retorted, standing up and dusting herself off.

Meanwhile, the chipette over on the sofa let her face drop into her hands hopelessly. It was clear her sisters had witnessed Miss Miller's entire speech. They'd heard everything. Oh, this was just… _peachy_.

The arguing teens near the chair seemed to get over their little quarrel for the sake of focusing on a more important target: Jeanette. The two rushed over to the girl who was still hiding her face, and Brittany managed to drag her hands away, revealing extremely pink cheeks underneath.

"Come on Netta, you're coming with us," The pink-clad chipette declared, and Jeanette felt both her sisters take her by the hand and lead her towards the stairs. "You _have_ to tell us everything!"

Never one to thrive in the spotlight, Jeanette could only sigh in quiet resignation as she let herself be led off to the bedroom the three girls shared, inevitably to be pumped for information. Not that she would be able to give them the information they craved, because honestly, she was in the dark about all this herself. If there was one thing her sister Brittany couldn't resist, it was all the juicy details of somebody else's love life. But until at hour or so ago, Jeanette's love life had been virtually nonexistent, so there weren't many details to spare.

After depositing their middle sibling on her own bed, Eleanor turned to shut the door while Brittany stood before Jeanette—who had started to fidget—tossing her auburn ponytail over her shoulder and placing her hands on her hips. She leaned down close and narrowed her eyes. "So. Spill."

"There's nothing _to_ spill, Brit," Jeanette replied, her gaze shifting everywhere but the inquisitive pairs of blue and brown eyes trained on her. "You already heard it all from Miss Miller."

"Oh, don't try and pretend this isn't a big deal!" Brittany was practically glowing with the urge to gossip. "You and Simon kissed! This is big! Really _big_!"

Jeanette wanted nothing more than to melt into the floor. Eleanor seemed to sense this and tried to counteract their older sister's forcefulness; she sat down next to the bespectacled chipette and put a friendly hand on her back. "So does this mean you two are going out now?"

The brunette sighed, picking at a loose thread on the bedspread. "I don't know."

Brittany scoffed. "What do you mean you don't _know_?"

Frustrated, Jeanette threw her hands in the air and let them fall to the bed. "I mean I don't know! One minute, we're just flipping through magazines, the next, he's, um," she felt herself flush, "_kissing_ me, and before I can react or anything, Miss Miller's there accusing us of all sorts of things we never did!"

Eleanor and Brittany could only stare in shock at her unexpected outburst. Surprisingly, they both stayed silent and waited for her to continue. She fixed her eyes downward, reverting back to her usual shy, quiet tone. "I haven't even had a minute to myself since, to figure out what this means."

"I'm sorry Jen," Eleanor said apologetically. "We didn't mean to be so pushy. We were just curious. And hey, you should be happy!"

Jeanette raised her eyebrows. "I should?"

"Uh, _duh_! Now you know Simon likes you back, dummy!" Brittany said, grinning. "You're going to get your first official boyfriend. I'm so proud!"

At this Jeanette felt her heart start to pound rapidly. She'd been so caught up in worry and embarrassment at the fact that Miss Miller had walked in on them, that she forgot to celebrate that today she'd had her first kiss, and Simon was the one who gave it to her.

He actually kissed her. He would never do it if he didn't like her, right? So the feelings she'd been keeping to herself for so long must actually be… _mutual_.

She brought her hands to her cheeks, beaming. _He likes me!_

Wonderful things like this rarely happened to the klutzy, shy chipette. Her crush actually liked her back—it was more than she ever could've hoped for!

Questions bombarded her from both of her sisters and Jeanette was ripped away from her dreamy revelation.

"When are you gonna see him again?"

"Are you going to call him?"

"You _can't_ just wait until school tomorrow!"

"You should go over there! It'd be _so_ romantic."

"Well? What are you going to do?"

"Um…" Jeanette blinked. What _was_ she going to do? The last she'd seen of Simon, he was a terrified mess. Not that she could blame him; Miss Miller had been positively menacing. Maybe she should give him a little time to gather his bearings. Or should she walk over there now? Or call him? Or… something?

This whole sudden romance thing had definitely thrown her off kilter. Sure, she knew how to be Simon's best friend. She'd like to think she was an expert at that. But being his, er, romantic interest… the protocol for _that_ was totally foreign to her. Not that she wasn't more than willing to learn! It was just… she really didn't want to screw this up.

She bit her lip. "I-I don't know… what do you guys think I should do?"

Her answer was Brittany dumping a fuzzy pink phone in her lap. "Call him!"

"O-okay…" Jeanette picked up the phone with shaking hands, feeling hot and uncomfortable under her sisters' constant staring and hovering. She squinted up at them through pink frames. "Um… could you guys maybe leave for a second?"

Eleanor reluctantly turned to step out of the room but Brittany dragged her back by the t-shirt. "Oh come on Jeanette, just pretend we're not here. Now, dial!"

She wanted to yell that it was physically impossible to pretend someone like Brittany wasn't there, but the passive chipette merely let out a quiet sigh. Doing her best to block out the anticipation radiating from her sisters, Jeanette began to punch a series of numbers into the phone that she'd had memorized since the third grade. Only after the number was already dialed and the phone at the Seville house began ringing did she realize she had _no_ idea what she was going to say.

The phone rang once. Twice. Beads of sweat gathered on her forehead. 5 rings, a sixth. Then, Alvin's voice telling her to leave a name and number, signifying the answering machine. Before the telltale beep, the panicky brunette slammed the phone back in its holder.

"No answer," Jeanette said, hoping the relief wasn't evident on her face. Unfortunately she was horrible at hiding her emotions from her siblings.

"Is something wrong?" Eleanor questioned, laying a hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah," Brittany frowned. "It's like you don't even want to talk to him."

"No, that's not it at all!" Jeanette suddenly began to feel extremely nauseous. Was it all the questioning eyes on her? Or had she eaten one peanut butter cookie too many? "I'm just… I'm just… not good at this," she managed to get out.

"Then just wait until you see him at school tomorrow." Brittany reassured her. "He'll ask you out, you'll both be happy—you'll see. Trust me, there's nothing to be nervous about, Jeanette… uh, Jeanette?"

Said girl had doubled over, clutching her stomach, and was looking very green in the face. Both her sisters moved closer, concerned.

"Jen, are you—"

Eleanor's question was cut off—by Jeanette abruptly heaving forward and throwing up all over Brittany's shoes.

A high pitched scream pierced the air.

"_JEANETTE!"_

* * *

Hours, and many failed attempts at reading or studying later, Simon found himself in his basement lab, plucking away at a blue bass guitar. Contrary to the popular belief that the scholarly chipmunk's only interests involved academia, music remained one of his great loves, even though nowadays he and his brothers only played the occasional gig. The low baritones of the music he played soothed him, and after today, he could definitely use some something soothing.

The shock had worn off and now he just felt numb. Miss Miller had called earlier and apologized to him, but it hadn't helped at all. The phone had rung a few more times after her call, but he'd ignored it.

Every time he recounted the events from earlier, and how he may have possibly ruined things with his best friend, that sick feeling would churn around in his stomach again—so he did his absolute best to not think about it.

He wasn't doing a bad job of it either, as he closed his eyes and just let his fingers do all the work against the strings of the guitar, faintly bobbing his head. Simon certainly took pride in his ability to distract himself.

A few songs later, he'd gotten lost in his playing, thoughts of Jeanette pushed far to the back of his mind. The stomach churning had dissipated and the worn out boy finally felt some form of relaxation.

That is, until the basement door opened and he heard someone start walking down the stairs. Simon didn't look up, only glaring down at the neck of his guitar to play a few complicated chord progressions. If it was Alvin, who was notorious for making him feel worse about himself, he was surely in for a grill session on what happened. And he really wasn't in the mood.

Luckily, it was Theodore's voice that met his ears. "There you are. I've been looking everywhere for you—Alvin thought you might still be at Jeanette's."

"Well, you found me." Simon closed his eyes and continued to strum away.

His younger brother immediately sensed his somewhat cutting tone. "What's wrong?" The plump boy asked, his voice saturated with that classic Theodore concern. "Did something happen today?"

The guitar went silent and Simon at last looked up, a hardened look in his eyes. He knew he shouldn't be taking out his own moodiness on his family, much less his kind-hearted little brother; that didn't stop him from doing it anyway. "What do you think?" He muttered sarcastically, before returning to the song.

At his sibling's obvious antagonism, Theodore just stood there awkwardly for a minute, his hands stuffed in his green hoodie. Then, very calmly, the shorter chipmunk walked over to the corner that held the Seville's guitar collection, picked up a simple acoustic one, and went to join Simon, who was perched on top of the washing machine. Climbing on top of the dryer, Theo situated himself before joining in on the song Simon was playing. It was one they'd both known since they were kids, so it wasn't long before the two boys were harmonizing perfectly.

Not long after Theodore joined in the playing, Simon felt his resolve to stay silent about his predicament begin to melt away. His little brother just had this ability to get him to want to open up, without saying a single word. It was simply his presence that suggested that he wanted to help, that he was always willing to help. That was just how Theodore was.

Simon sighed and let go of his bass for a moment, lifting his glasses to rub his eyes.

Hey, what could it hurt.

"So, that plan we made yesterday. About me being subtle? Yeah, I didn't exactly follow through on it very well." He tried to give a wry chuckle but it ended up sounding forced.

Theodore, who'd never stopped playing, simply shot him a smile before turning back to his strumming. "That's okay Simon. You know it doesn't matter what Alvin said, you should take your relationship with Jeanette at your own pace. There shouldn't be any pressure for you to ask her out."

It was good advice. Too bad it didn't quite apply anymore.

"Yes, well, I think it might be a little late for that." Simon replied awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. "I may have overshot the whole 'subtlety' thing."

Theodore looked confused. "What do you mean?"

Simon hung his head, mindlessly plucking away at his guitar yet again. "I… I might have… kissed her."

"Really? That's great!"

"No, it's not." Simon found himself glaring at nothing again. Uh oh. He felt the truth bubbling up in his throat. It was all inevitably about to come pouring out like a waterfall. "Theo, she didn't kiss me back. All I did was freak her out. Not only that, but _Miss Miller _walked in on us! She thought I was trying to- trying to—" he wracked his brain for words that weren't completely embarrassing to say out loud, "—to take _advantage_ of Jeanette or something. She went nuts! She chased me out of the house with an umbrella, for God's sake!"

Whatever explanation Theodore had been expecting, that obviously hadn't been it. The green-clad chipmunk had stopped playing his guitar and was now gaping at him, his mouth trying to form some words of reassurance.

_Only, there aren't any, are there._ Simon thought. _Because this is just pathetic._

"I was idiot to ever take Alvin's advice." He continued to berate himself. "Things were fine the way they were. Now I've gone and scared off my best friend!"

Theodore was quiet for a moment, making Simon regret raising his voice. It wasn't his brother's fault he was such a moody idiot today. Finally, Theo spoke.

"Um… I really think you're being too hard on yourself, Simon. Just because she didn't kiss you back, doesn't mean she doesn't like you…"

Simon rolled his eyes and gave the guitar an extra hard strum. "Sounds logical."

"I'm serious, Si. Don't give up on her just yet. If I've learned anything from dating Eleanor, it's that girls are hard to read sometimes. Y'know? It's like they do stuff and you think it means something, but it really means something else…" The bespectacled boy next to him raised an eyebrow. Theodore never really was good with the whole syntax thing.

Plus, even if what he was saying was true, it wasn't very comforting to Simon. Why did females have to be so complicated, anyway? In a perfect world, there would be some sort of algorithm or equation as a surefire way to figure them out. Then… _then_ he would be good to go.

"I don't know, Theo," he sighed. "You didn't see her face. You didn't see _Miss Miller's_ face. I'm going to have nightmares tonight."

At this, Theodore grinned. "You're not even exaggerating, are you?"

Simon shook his head, a hearty laugh escaping him. More giggles followed from the chipmunk next to him, shaking the washer-dryer beneath them. Soon both boys found themselves in a fit of laughter, tears escaping their eyes, hands clutching their guitars for support. It'd finally hit them how hilariously ludicrous the situation really was.

When the laughs dissipated, and the two Seville boys were trying to catch their breath again in a comfortable silence, Theodore was the first to break it.

"Okay, I have a plan. Tomorrow at school, you should do something nice for her. Show her how much you care. Like bake her a cake!" He smiled. "Always works for Ellie."

Simon shook his head. "I'm a terrible baker. Besides, it seems a little much. I mean, the goal is _not_ to freak her out… somehow I doubt showing up with a cake tomorrow is the way to do that."

"Hm… guess you're right."

Although he wouldn't voice aloud, because he didn't want to further upset his brother, Simon honestly felt the whole plan was futile. Theo hadn't heard Jeanette's earlier words.

_Just friends, that's all._ The words were like a splinter in his brain—they wouldn't leave him alone.

Theodore seemed to read in on his uncertainty, and managed to catch his gaze. "C'mon Si… cheer up. Jeanette likes you, I know it. Just put yourself out there one more time. I promise you it'll pay off."

* * *

That was how the next morning at school, Simon ended up standing near Jeanette's locker, clutching a yellow rose in his sweaty palm.

It'd been Theodore's idea, the rose thing. Before Dave had given the 3 boys a ride to school, Simon had snuck into a neighbor's yard and cut away one of the pretty yellow blossoms. Alvin had laughed at the sight of it, but Simon had been too nervous to care.

The minutes ticked by, no sign of Jeanette. And he knew for a fact that she always, always visited her locker before class. The most negative thoughts kept pestering his brain. She wouldn't be so serious about avoiding him that she'd skip school or something, would she? It didn't sound like his Jeanette to do something like that, but…

Simon felt his face burn at his own thoughts. _Shut up, _he scolded himself. _She's not yours._

The hand holding the rose began to tremble, so he hid it behind his back. How long had he been standing here? It had to be at least 20 minutes; Dave was in a hurry to get to work and had dropped them off early today.

He'd already done as much mental preparation possible for Jeanette's arrival. He was going to apologize for being so forward, he was going to hand her the rose and ask her to give them a chance. Because he really believed they would be great together, so why not? Why not?

Now all he needed was for her to show up.

The halls were beginning to clear, last minute stragglers were heading to class. On a normal day, Simon would already be in his front row seat in homeroom, planner out, pencil at the ready.

Still no Jeanette. His heart began to sink.

_Come on, Jen,_ he thought desperately, _we've been best friends since third grade. You have to give me a chance._

The shrill sound of the late bell rang through his ears, marking the first time Simon Seville had ever, ever been late for class. The sound also confirmed his worst fears—that Jeanette wasn't coming. That she was probably avoiding him. That Theodore was wrong, and he really had ruined things between them for good.

Slinging his backpack over his sagging shoulders, he shoved the rose into the nearest trashcan and headed for homeroom.

* * *

Damn. Baha and my meanstreak towards Simon continues! One more chapter to go.

Review my pets.


	5. Chapter 5

Blahhhrghh. I promised myself I would finish this story… so here's the last chapter. Even though it's been way too long since I started and I now naturally think this story is crap, crap, megacrap. For some reason my mind is just programmed to hate everything I do after a month or two. fudge monkeys

And shout out to my old tenth grade world history teacher, dr. erikson. You said the word 'um' way too many times during your lectures. Trust me. I counted. You also confiscated my avatar drawings in class and wouldn't give them back. Little did you know that 5 years later I would write you into my Alvin and the chipmunks fanfic. Take that.

Also I think I may have written Alvin as kind of a douche in the beginning of the chapter, but honestly when I think about it, teenage Alvin would probably actually be kind of a douche.

WELL on that note, enjoy the last chapter!

* * *

By lunch that day, the stinging feeling of rejection had formed a pit in Simon's stomach, one that only seemed to ache more as the school day dragged on. Usually he reveled in Monday morning chemistry and trig. But today, the teenaged chipmunk was nothing more than a zoned-out blob, which his teachers had noticed _and _lectured him for. To be Simon Seville and scolded in front of the whole class for not paying attention... it was highly embarrassing. _Highly_.

Needless to say, he was not himself.

Not unlike a zombie, he trudged through the lunch line, pulled who knows what onto his tray, and made his way to the chipmunks and chipettes' usual table, hearing his joints pop as he sat down. For once, Simon was happy to be the first one there. It was a short-lived happiness however, as he spotted his brothers walking toward him with their lunches, Brittany and Eleanor a few steps behind them. And what a surprise. Jeanette wasn't with them.

He stared off to the left and forced a bite of creamed corn into his mouth as the others dropped their trays on the table.

"Jeez Si, what's with you? Ya look like hell." Alvin remarked, plopping down next to him with a big annoying grin on his face. A split second passed before Brittany cuffed the red hat right off his head. "_Hey! _What was that for?"

The eldest chipette gave no indication that she'd heard Alvin, instead turning to address Simon. She bit her lip. "Jeanette wanted us to tell you that she's sick today," Brittany blurted quickly.

"Um… okay. Hope she feels better, then," Simon mumbled, not quite meeting her eyes. Somehow, he wasn't buying the whole sick routine.

"But she really is!" Interjected Eleanor, who'd picked up on Simon's skepticism. Her outburst came out a little loud, and the table grew silent and awkward. At this point everybody knew about the 'incident' from yesterday, but they also knew that for some reason, things weren't going very well.

The group dynamic was at stake here, and the girls plus Theodore were determined to fix it. Eleanor collected herself and looked to her boyfriend for help; he patted her shoulder. "She really is," she said in a quieter voice. "S-she's been throwing up and everything."

Brittany elbowed her sister and Ellie blushed, realizing she'd probably given too much information.

Alvin, who didn't possess as much tact as the others, laughed and slung a patronizing arm around his taller brother's shoulders. "Well there ya have it folks," he sang, "We finally know what happens to a girl after she's been besmooched by ol' Si here. She hurls."

His proceeding laughter was only met by glares from the rest of the table. Simon, who'd turned red, shook off Alvin's arm and narrowed his eyes. "Ha. Ha. You're hilarious."

"Don't listen to him, he's an idiot," Brittany declared, reaching across to smack Alvin upside the head again.

"Trust me, I'm already quite aware of that fact." Simon let his fork clatter to his tray. "I'm going to get some napkins." He stood up and began to walk away before anyone could say anything else to him.

Unfortunately, he hadn't gotten far enough away from the table to miss Brittany continue the conversation in a low voice: "Honestly guys, I don't know what to think. Like, I _thought _Jen liked Simon, but last night she didn't even want to call him! I mean she was all freaked out. Hate to say it but I think things may get awkward with our little group. Seriously, we might have to—"

Simon stuffed his hands in his pockets, finally out of hearing range. Whispering never really had been Brittany's strong suit.

It seemed like there was only one option left at this point, and he let out a breath, positively dreading it.

* * *

"Miss Miller!"

Jeanette jumped from her stupor. Neither of her sisters had this class with her—world history, the last class of the day—so the exasperatingly strict teacher, Dr. Erikson, must have been addressing her.

"Erm, yes?" She sat up, adjusting her glasses, which had fallen sideways during the daydream she'd been having.

"'Yes' is not a sufficient answer to what year the Qin dynasty fell, so I strongly suggest that you either pay attention or leave," the elderly woman snapped. Jeanette fought the urge to roll her eyes. How could she be expected to pay attention just 5 minutes before the final bell? Especially during a horrible week like this? Instead, the ever obedient Jeanette sunk low in her chair.

"Sorry, Ms. Erikson." She replied meekly.

When the teacher had turned her attention back to a particularly long PowerPoint, Jeanette sighed and returned to staring out the window. She twisted her pencil on her fingertips, thinking about what would happen in a few minutes, after the bell rang.

It was Wednesday. On Wednesdays, neither she nor Simon had any after school activities to go to. The rest of the week it was chess club or national honor society or something or other. Not Wednesdays. Usually the two would meet up at his locker, then walk home together, sometimes stopping for a snack at the gas station on the way home. But today, the brunette really doubted the usual was going to happen. She could bank on the fact that when she got to his locker, no matter how fast she ran, he wasn't going to be there.

It was an easy deduction to make, because for the past 3 days, her best friend Simon had been blatantly avoiding her.

On Monday evening, when she'd finally felt like she'd gotten over the terrible 24-hour stomach bug, Brittany had forced the fuzzy pink phone back in her hand. And as nervous as she was to talk about the kiss, Jeanette had bravely dialed the number, only to have Dave tell her that Simon wasn't at home, and could he take a message? She didn't leave one.

Tuesday, she'd steeled herself for school, now more excited than nervous. But when she'd looked for him at his locker, he wasn't there. Later, when she walked into chem, her usually punctual friend hadn't even arrived yet. He managed to walk in right as the bell rang, so there was no chance to talk, as it was test day. He'd finished first and walked out without so much as a glance in her direction. She remembered the prickling tears she'd felt as she tried to finish her own test.

Then Simon hadn't shown up to lunch, and the other 2 classes they shared were the same as the first. No words. No eye contact. No acknowledgement whatsoever. Barely any chance for acknowledgement, for that matter.

By the end of Tuesday, Jeanette wanted to cry. What did she do to deserve _this?_

That night, her sisters had been no help. She suspected they were only telling her what she wanted to hear—crap like, 'tomorrow will be better, you'll see.' Sure enough, she was proven right; it was Wednesday, school was almost out, and the only word she'd gotten out of Simon today was a halfhearted, 'hi' right before the teacher started talking in second period stats class.

The future of their relationship was starting to look pretty bleak.

Funny how 3 days ago, Jeanette had been convinced that maybe he did like her back, and that things were finally going to happen between them. Because, well, that kiss—what else could it have meant? How giddy she'd felt! The giddy feeling lasted right up until she'd felt nauseous, but that was only because of the questionable leftover meatloaf she'd eaten for lunch that day.

Now, she was being brushed off, and why exactly? Her brain couldn't come up with an answer that made sense. Simon certainly didn't act like someone who had feelings for her. He didn't act like someone who liked her at all. It didn't even feel like they were friends anymore.

_He hates me._

Jeanette had spent all day trying to muster up some form of anger at him (after all, he deserved it!), but it wasn't working. Anger just wasn't in her nature, sometimes. The only emotions she could really pinpoint were confusion and hurt.

Finally the bell rang, and the quiet, gangly girl neatly put away her history supplies and ducked out of the classroom, wiping at her eyes when she was sure no one was looking.

* * *

Jeanette decided to just bypass the lockers altogether, wanting to get home as soon as possible. All the negative emotions that had been plaguing her the past few days were sapping her energy, and the chipette longed for nothing more than to flop down on her bed and take a nap.

She pushed out of the front double doors of the high school, plodding down the sidewalk for a ways before turning the first corner on the way home.

And there he was.

Simon was a few paces ahead of her, his head tilted towards the ground as he shouldered a fat backpack that appeared overloaded with books. Looked like he'd skipped a trip to his locker, too. Probably to avoid her.

Should she… call out to him? No. If he was going out of his way to ignore her, why would he want to walk with her? But she didn't want be walking a few yards behind him the entire way home; what if he turned around? That would definitely make things more awkward than they already were.

Jeanette swallowed, pausing one more long second before lifting a cautious hand.

"Simon! W-wait up!"

She watched as he froze for a split second and then spun around to give her a smile that looked a tad bit forced. "Oh- er- Jeanette. How are you?"

At last she caught up to him, and pushed her glasses back up her nose; they'd fallen askew during her run to catch up to him. She finally had him in a place where he couldn't run away from her. And now she had no idea what to say. "Um… I'm alright, I guess. How about you?"

"Good, I'm pretty good."

"That's… good."

Silence blanketed the two best friends as they continued to walk home. It felt… unnatural, for them. Finally Jeanette swallowed and broke it.

"Simon, can I ask you something?"

He turned to look at her apprehensively. "Uh, sure, what is it?"

She hesitated. Confrontational conversations were _really_ not her thing. They were more like the complete the opposite of her thing. But the brunette chipette knew that Simon would never bring up this particular topic himself, so it was up to her to hopefully set things right. She took a deep breath and put on a brave face.

"Are we still friends?"

The question seemed to take him by surprise. "Of course we are! At least, I hope we are. Are we?"

Jeanette narrowed her eyes. How could he be asking _her_ that? Hewas the one who'd been ignoring her for the past few days! You can't just kiss a girl and then go and ignore them!

But… he was looking at her so earnestly now, like he was actually unsure of her answer. He was being so, so… confusing. When had Simon gone from her best friend to this confusing and mystifying, er—for lack of a better term—_boy?_ For a split second she wished Brittany were there with her; Brittany had loads of experience with deciphering the mysteries of boys, while she herself had, well, none.

_Come on Jeanette, this is Simon Seville we're talking about! _She scolded herself. _You've known him since you were 8 years old! Just talk to the guy!_

She sighed.

"Well, we always are in my book, but lately… I don't know, it feels like you don't want anything to do with me anymore."

"No, that's not it at all! I just… I-I thought that you might want some space from me, after, erm, after I made things so…awkward a few days ago." The bespectacled chipmunk's cheeks were turning red and he would no longer meet her eyes.

Even though she was blushing herself a little at the memory of that disastrous incident with Miss Miller, Jeanette couldn't help but dawn a pleased smile. He didn't hate her! No matter how much she wanted a romance between them to work out, their friendship came first and foremost in her mind. Imagining a life without being friends with Simon seemed almost impossible.

Filled with happiness and relief, she lifted a comforting hand to the taller boy's shoulder. "Si, what happened the other night wasn't your fault! Miss Miller just lost her marbles for a second, that's all. Can we just put it behind us?" She dropped her hand and rubbed her arm shyly. "I've really missed you."

"I've missed you too." He was smiling now, but still looked unsure about something. The blushing chipmunk brought his hand to the back of his neck and looked at his shoes. Jeanette felt for him, she really did. Something told her that that boy in front of her was as uncomfortable with talking about this sort of thing as she was. "Jeanette, I…"

"Yes?" Her heart beat rapidly in her chest. Could this be the moment?

"I just want to apologize for, uh, kissing you the other day."

_Oh._ Her shoulders slumped visibly. But her eyebrows quirked upwards when Simon began to do something he almost _never_ did—babble.

"It's just, well, Alvin kept advising me to make some sort of move—not that I did it just because of what Alvin told me of course! B-but, I, I thought that maybe you might—but it wasn't fair of me to assume without—" At this point Simon had turned as red as a tomato and seemed to realize that he was wasn't making much sense; he groaned in humiliation and hung his head. "Look, would it be possible to just forget that I ever did it? I don't want to lose you, Jen."

She was floored. He thought she didn't like him that way. That she didn't like the kiss—no, it was worse than that. He was making it sound as if he thought she was revolted by the entire idea of them together!

How could someone so intelligent get it all so utterly wrong?

"Simon… you could never lose me." She was trying to catch his gaze but the boy was intent on examining the ground thoroughly. "And… what makes you think I want to forget that it ever happened? That's probably the last thing I want to do."

His confused face reappeared. "But… after it happened you told Miss Miller that we were just friends." He kicked a rock down the sidewalk. "And you seemed pretty adamant about it. Then when you didn't show up for school the next day, I thought—uh—I thought that maybe you didn't want to see me anymore."

Jeanette couldn't help it, she laughed. She really shouldn't have, because Simon looked heartbroken when she did, but truthfully, she couldn't help it. The fact that this whole stupid drama between them could've been avoided with a little communication was just plain funny.

"Oh Simon, I only said that to Miss Miller because she was about to hit you with an umbrella! Only, she did anyway, so I'm not sure the comment helped much… and I really was just feeling sick Monday. Had a stomach bug." She chuckled and smiled up at him. His face was suddenly lit up, and it was this hopeful expression that gave her the courage to say what she'd longed to say to him for ages. "The... truth is, I really like you Simon. A lot more than a friend."

The urge to run and hide after her confession welled up inside her, but Jeanette fought it down, because she didn't want to miss a second of the blissful expression that had just spread over the face of the boy in front of her. Simon, who was usually very conservative and levelheaded when it came to his emotions, couldn't seem to contain the grin that was taking over his face.

"You—o-oh." He said simply, in a dazed voice.

Jeanette only giggled. The awkward, stifling tension between them had finally dispersed, now that everything they'd been keeping to themselves forever was out in the open. Now the only things that remained were the good kind of butterflies, and she felt lighter than air. If only they'd done this sooner!

"So," Simon cleared his throat in his hand, "You like me, and well, obviously I like you…" He trailed off.

"Looks like it," she agreed, fiddling with the hem of her shirt. Both of them were still very red in the face. As happy as they both were, taking this step forward was more than a little intimidating, since they'd harbored such a strong friendship for so many years. She peered up at him, slightly surprised, when he reached out to take one of her hands in his.

"Will you go out with me? This Friday, maybe?" He sounded so deeply sincere. "We could go to the science museum and see that new Imax film on the Cretaceous period—I've heard it's as exciting as it is informative-" Looking like he was suddenly thinking his own suggestion was too nerdy and unromantic for a first date, the scholarly chipmunk swallowed and tried to backtrack quickly. "O-or we could do dinner and a movie. Whatever you'd like."

His lovely brunette companion squeezed his hand and beamed. "Actually, I think that Imax film sounds great," she said, pulling him along with her to resume their trek home.

* * *

It wasn't long before Jeanette saw her house coming into view. Simon still held her hand firmly in his, almost like he didn't want to let go. And, she was completely okay with that. A silence had drifted over the pair during the last minute or so of their walk, but for her at least, it was a comfortable one. Honestly, she was just enjoying the feel of being close to him again. One of her worst days had quickly turned into one of her best; that giddy feeling in her chest had come back ten fold.

The two teenagers turned into her driveway and Jeanette spied Simon scratching his nose out of the corner of her eye—a clear tell of his that usually meant something was on his mind. Playfully, she nudged him with her elbow without dropping their hands.

"What's up?"

He met her eyes, and they stopped right before the front porch steps, turning until they were facing one another. In a silent agreement, the two dropped their heavy backpacks on the first step. Simon looked happy, and yet there was also that telltale thoughtful expression on his face. Suddenly her palm felt like it was pouring sweat again, and she finally let go of his hand.

"I was just… wondering…" He cleared his throat. "I-I wasn't sure if I was supposed to formally ask you to be my girlfriend, or…?" A nervous chuckle escaped him, and he rubbed the back of his neck. "Wow, yeah. I'm kind of a novice at this, as you can see."

This caused her to giggle. And what, he thought she was some sort of an expert? "Don't worry, I am too. And I think you got your point across, so, yes," Jeanette wrung her hands, smiling shyly, "I hope we can safely say you're my boyfriend now."

At the mention of 'boyfriend,' the boy in question blinked, almost as if the word itself amazed him. His face broke out into a wide grin. "Oh. Okay, yes, we can definitely say that. Cool."

Jeanette quirked an amused eyebrow—Simon Seville almost never said 'cool' like a normal teenager. He'd been struck dumb... because of her.

It was becoming hard to contain the squeals of excitement welling up in her throat.

"So," she began in what she hoped was a casual tone, "just curious… how long have you liked me, anyway?"

"A while," he responded after a moment. "You?"

She laughed and bobbed her head. "Same. A while."

Then the conversation dissipated and they were just simply staring and smiling at each other, just like old times. Except now, Jeanette thought, they were a couple. So it wouldn't be weird to kiss him right now, would it?

For a moment or two she simply studied his face—the black-rimmed, round glasses, the boyish, slightly messy haircut, the soft, yet intelligent grey eyes. She wanted to do it. She was going to do it. Swiftly grabbing ahold of his upper arm, Jeanette leaned upwards to give him a quick peck on the lips, pulling back just as quickly.

She dared to look him in the eye after. His cheeks were pink, and he was smiling; she couldn't help but smile back before averting her eyes.. "I, uh…" Her arms grasped behind her back on their own accord. "The other day… I never got a chance to return the favor."

A second later, warm hands held her waist, pulling her close. She glanced up in time to see him leaning toward her again, just like he'd done 3 days ago—only this time, she was ready. She closed her eyes and parted her lips and they met in the middle. Her hands lifted to firmly grasp his shoulders, and he hugged her closer.

This kiss was different than the other two; it was slow, it was heartfelt, and _finally_, it was _mutual_. Not to mention it had 3 days worth of pent up emotion thrown in there. Jeanette's heart threatened to burst out her chest and just float away. She decided, then and there, that _this_ was her first real kiss with Simon.

After a few moments, they pulled apart, sufficiently flushed. They shared a smile before Simon let go of her waist and stooped to pick up his backpack, and Jeanette followed suit.

"I suppose this means you'll have to return the favor again sometime," He joked, standing back up and adjusting his glasses. She blushed, letting out a laugh.

"I'd be okay with that." She leaned forward to peck his cheek before ascending the first step. "See you tomorrow?"

"Definitely." He nodded happily, turning to make the trek across the street to the Seville house.

Halfway through her front yard, the boy spun around and called out to her. "By the way, how'd you fare on the chem test?"

Jeanette took her hand off the knob of her front door and grinned before calling back: "Pretty sure I aced it. You?"

Simon's face sported a satisfied and yet amused expression; probably because he'd heard the answer he'd been expecting. "Same. See you, Jen!" She waved and watched him jog, exhilarated, across the street, finally disappearing inside his front door.

Entering her house, Jeanette let her bag fall to the floor and put a hand to her chest. Her heart showed no signs of slowing down yet. She was pretty sure there would be a stupid, dreamy look on her face for the rest of the day, one that Brittany would surely point out and scoff at. And who cared? Not her.

She closed her eyes and smiled.

* * *

Hallelujah, they hooked up! I know, totally unexpected. So, the end. My random chipmunk fandom excursion can now rest in peace. Thanks for reading!

(simon I would totally go see an imax film on the cretaceous period with you)


End file.
